James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 7 Papers of Jonathan Messersmith Foltz, Series 1 Correspondence
Description
James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 7 Papers of Jonathan Messersmith Foltz, Series 1 contains the correspondence of Jonathan Messersmith Foltz, from 1831 to 1858.
This collection contains correspondence from Dr. Jonathan M. Foltz-the majority of which are addressed to James Buchanan. There are no items from Foltz's childhood or later years (after retirement), nor materials from the early parts of his Naval career. The collection documents two of Foltz's deployments in some detail-his time on the Mexico-Texas border and the three years spent in South America. When writing to Buchanan, Foltz focused more on the political details he observed, rather than military activities. Some letters in the years and months leading up to the 1848 election document Foltz's involvement in the selection of a Democratic candidate for President. The materials do not include much about Foltz's family life, other than a few mentions of his wife and their wedding.
Admin/Biographical History
Jonathan Messersmith Foltz was born in Lancaster in 1810, the son of Jonathan and Elizabeth Messersmith Foltz. He studied medicine with Dr. William Thompson in Lancaster before attending Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia. He was commissioned as an assistant naval surgeon in 1831. He reached the rank of surgeon in 1838.
As Naval Surgeon, Dr. Foltz served on the Raritan at the beginning of the Mexican-American War, where he witnessed battles at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma. About five years later, Foltz was deployed again-this time to South America aboard the Jamestown. He arrived in South America during the second half of the Platine War, fought by Brazil and Uruguay against the Argentine Confederation, from August 1851- February 1852. He also watched as the United States and Great Britain exerted their influence on the new nations and their often corrupt and ineffective governments. Through his service in the Navy and his trips to remote places (at that time), Foltz became an expert on exotic diseases. He published a number of articles on the subject. Prior to his service in Mexico and South America, Foltz also spent time in Asia, Europe and Northern Africa. Foltz served during the Civil War, participating in a number of campaigns and battles. Specifically, he served as Fleet Surgeon under Admiral David Farragut. He continued to serve in the Navy, eventually rising to the positions of Chief of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery and Surgeon General of the Navy. In 1872, Foltz was put on the retired list, but continued to serve as Inspector General of Hospitals and Fleets, as well as Chief Surgeon of the Philadelphia Naval Hospital. Officially, he retired in 1873, after serving for forty-two years. He had reached the rank of Commodore.
Foltz married Rebecca Steinman (1830-1904), also from Lancaster, in 1854. They had three sons: Frederick Steinman (born Frederick Buchanan), Charles Steinman, and Jonathan Clinton Foltz. He lived with his family in Philadelphia. Foltz died at the age of 66 in 1877.
Not much is known about Foltz's relationship with James Buchanan, especially its origin. However, Foltz often called Buchanan his best friend and seemed to be a constant support of Buchanan for President, campaigning heavily for him leading up to the 1848 and 1856 elections (Foltz was stationed in South America in 1852).
Works Cited:
Franklin and Marshall College Archives and Special Collections. Jonathan Messersmith Foltz Papers, MS 21 Finding Aid. Lancaster, PA: Franklin and Marshall College, 2013. Accessed June 9, 2015. http://library.fandm.edu/archives/mscoll/jmfoltz.pdf.
Foltz, Charles S. Surgeon of the Seas: The Adventurous Life of Surgeon General Jonathan M. Foltz In the Days of Wooden Ships, Told from His Notes of the Moment Indianapolis, IN: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1931.
"Foltz, Jonathan Messersmith." In Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography, edited by James Grant Wilson and John Fiske. New York: D. Appleton, 1900. Accessed June 9, 2015. http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Appletons%27_Cyclop%C3%A6dia_of_American_Biography/Foltz,_Jonathan_Messersmith.
System of Arrangement
James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 7 Papers of Jonathan Messersmith Foltz is arranged in one series. The series and subseries have been used to keep the consistency with cataloging throughout the James Buchanan Family Papers.
JBFP Part 7 Series 1 Correspondence
Subseries 1 Letters from Jonathan Messersmith Foltz
[J. M. Foltz Medical lecture notes, 1825-1829], Health Sciences Library Historical Collections, Health Sciences Library, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.
http://search.lib.unc.edu/search?R=UNCb1976055
Jonathan Messersmith Foltz papers, 1829-1871, Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Washington, DC.
James Buchanan Papers, Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections http://archives.dickinson.edu/collection-descriptions/james-buchanan-papers
James Buchanan and Harriet Lane Johnston Papers, Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/collections/james-buchanan-and-harriet-lane-johnston-papers/
James Buchanan Papers, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, http://www2.hsp.org/collections/manuscripts/b/Buchanan0091.html
James Buchanan Papers, Penn State University Libraries, https://libraries.psu.edu/findingaids/1458.htm
Related Item Notes
James Buchanan Family Papers
James Buchanan Collection, MG0096
Coleman Papers Collection, MG0275 Series 1
Andrew J. Steinman Collection, MG0066
Historical Society of Pennsylvania microfilm
Photograph collections
Curatorial collections
Wheatland Mansion
Charles S. Foltz, Surgeon of the Seas: The Adventurous Life of Surgeon General Jonathan M. Foltz In the Days of Wooden Ships, Told from His Notes of the Moment. Indianapolis, IN: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1931. Call # 923.5 F671f
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Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Description Level
Series
Custodial History
The James Buchanan Family Papers were collected by the James Buchanan Foundation for the Preservation of Wheatland. This collection was relocated from the Wheatland mansion to the LancasterHistory archives in the Spring of 2009. Digitization of the James Buchanan Family Papers was funded by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, PHMC Appl ID # 201808013051, 2019-2020.
Journal of the fifth House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Philadelphia, on Tuesday, the second day of December, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-four
Appendix: Accounts of the Treasury of Pennsylvania, from the 1st of January to the 31st of December, inclusive. Philadelphia : Hall & Sellers, 1795.--Report of the Register-General of the state of the finances of Pennsylvania, for the year 1794. Philadelphia : Hall & Sellers, 1795.
Journal of the first session of the eleventh House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Lancaster, on Wednesday, the fifth day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred
Printed by Francis Bailey, in the square north-east of the court-house,
Date of Publication
1800[-1801]
Physical Description
[2], 474, 67, [1], 21, [1], 6 pages ; (folio)
Notes
Through Feb. 27, 1801.
Coat of arms on title page.
"Appendix. Receipts and expenditures in the Treasury of Pennsylvania, from the first of January to the twenty-ninth of November, 1800, both days inclusive." "Report of the register-general of the state of the finances of Pennsylvania, from the first of January to the twenty-ninth of November, 1800, both days inclusive."--67 p., with separate title page, dated 1800.
"Report of the comptroller-general of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania."--6 p., with separate title page, dated 1800.
"Report of the register-general of the state of the finances of Pennsylvania. From the first of January to the thirtieth of November, 1800, both days inclusive."--21 p., with separate title page, dated 1800.
Journal of the first session of the fourth House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Philadelphia, on Tuesday the third day of December, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-three
Appendix: Accounts of the Treasury of Pennsylvania ... Philadelphia :Francis Bailey, 1794.--Report of the Register-General of the state of the finances of Pennsylvania, for the year 1793 ... Philadelphia : Francis Bailey, 1794.
Journal of the first session of the second House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Philadelphia, on Tuesday the sixth day of December, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-one
Appendix: State of the finances of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as reported to the Governor, by the Comptroller-General, the Register-General, and Treasurer of the said Commonwealth. --Appendix containing the schedules referred to in the preceding statement. [Philadelphia : Printed by Francis Bailey & Thomas Lang, 1791] --State of the finances of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, from November 1st to December 31st, 1791. [Philadelphia : Printed by Francis Bailey & Thomas Lang, 1792].
Journal of the first session of the seventh House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Philadelphia, on Tuesday the sixth day of December, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-six, and of the Commonwealth the twenty first
Appendix: Accounts of the Treasury of Pennsylvania, from the 1st of January to the 31st December, 1796 inclusive, Philadelphia : Printed by Hall & Sellers, 1797.--Report of the Register-General of the state of the finances of Pennsylvania, for the year 1796. Philadelphia : Printed by Hall & Sellers, 1797.
Journal of the first session of the sixth House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, : which commenced at Philadelphia, on Tuesday, the first day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five, and of the Commonwealth the twentieth
Printed by Francis & Robert Bailey, at Yorick's Head, No. 116, High-Street.,
Date of Publication
M, DCCC, XCV [1795].
Physical Description
487, [1],19,[1], 12 p. ; 32 cm.
Notes
The session ended April 4, 1796.
Title vignette: state seal.
Appendix: Report of the Register-General of the state of the finances of Pennsylvnia, for the year M,DCC,XCV. Philadelphia: Printed by Francis & Robert Bailey,at Yorick's Head, no. 116, High-Street; Accounts of the Treasury of Pennsylvania, from the first of January to the thirty=first of December, inclusive. Philadelphia: Printed by Francis & Robert Bailey,at Yorick's Head, no. 116, High-Street
Jasper Yeates Colonial Library.
Book number 17b as assigned by Yeates.
At top of title page: signature of Matthias Barton.
Journal of the first session of the twelfth House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Lancaster on Tuesday the first day of December, in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and one, and of the Commonwealth the twenty-sixth
Appendix: Receipts and expenditures in the Treasury of Pennsylvania, from the fourteenth January to the thirtieth November, 1801, both days inclusive. Lancaster : Printed by Francis Bailey, 1801.--Report of the Register-General, of the state of the finances of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, for the year 1801. Lancaster : Printed by William & Robert Dickson, March, 1802.
Shaw-Shoemaker #2869, 2876.
Bookplate : Private Library of J. Guy Eshleman, Lancaster, Pa. Book No 962.
At top of title page: Signature of Michael Holman (a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, (1801-1804).
Journal of the first session of the twelfth House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Lancaster on Tuesday the first day of December, in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and one, and of the Commonwealth the twenty-sixth
Appendix: Receipts and expenditures in the Treasury of Pennsylvania, from the fourteenth January to the thirtieth November, 1801, both days inclusive. Lancaster : Printed by Francis Bailey, 1801.--Report of the Register-General, of the state of the finances of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, for the year 1801. Lancaster : Printed by William & Robert Dickson, March, 1802.
Journal of the second session of the seventh House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : which commenced at Philadelphia, on Monday, the twenty-eighth day of August, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety-seven
Printed by Hall & Sellers, no. 58, Market-Street.,
Date of Publication
M. DCC. XCVII. [1797]
Physical Description
398,[1]62,19, [1], 19, [1], 19,[1] pages ; 31 cm.
Notes
Last session 5 April 1798.
Jasper Yeates Colonial Law Library.
Appendix: Accounts of the Treasury of Pennsylvania, from the 1st of January to the 31st December, 1797 inclusive, Philadelphia : Printed by F & R. Bailey, 1798.--Report of the Register-General of the state of the finances of Pennsylvania, for the year 1797. Philadelphia : Printed by Francis & Robert Bailey. --Report of the Register-General of the state of the finances of Pennsylvania for the year 1707: Philadelphia: Zachariah Poulson, Junior, 1798.-- General statement of the contracts for opening and improving roads and rivers...Philadelphia: Zachariah Poulson, Junior, 1797.
